Franklin Gardner

Franklin Kitchell Gardner (29 January 1823-29 April 1873) was a Major-General of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.

Biography
Franklin Kitchell Gardner was born in New York City, New York on 29 January 1823, the son of a New Yorker father and a Louisianian mother. Gardner graduated from West Point in 1843 17th out of a class of 39 cadets, and he was classmates with Ulysses S. Grant. He married the daughter of Louisiana governor Alexandre Mouton, making him the brother-in-law of future Confederate general Alfred Mouton. Gardner fought against the Seminoles in Florida, in the Mexican-American War, and in the war against the Utah Mormons, and he decided to side with his wife's family during the American Civil War. In April 1862, he fought at the Battle of Shiloh under the command of Jubal Early, and he took part in the campaigns in Tennessee and Kentucky. Gardner also took command of the Port Hudson garrison in Mississippi, guarding the Mississippi River from the Union. He defended the city to the best of his ability, but he was forced to surrender on 9 July 1863. In August 1864, he was released in a prisoner-of-war exchange, and he commanded the District of Mississippi and East Louisiana under Richard Taylor. On 11 May 1865, he surrendered at Meridian, Mississippi, and he died in Lafayette, Louisiana in 1873.